


The Procrastinator

by kamja



Category: Arashi (Band), Johnny's Entertainment, V6 (Band)
Genre: Awkward Romance, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 17:53:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6339412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kamja/pseuds/kamja
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A confession and a first kiss.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Procrastinator

The realization hit Nino, slowly and silently over the course of the hour, as the two of them sat in Okada's apartment living room. He furtively looked up over the top of his DS to see if Okada had noticed. Well, of course not, he hadn’t moved or said anything to draw attention to himself. Okada was still leafing through a magazine. However, he sensed Nino’s gaze on him and he looked up. 

“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing,” and he shifted his eyes back to his game and that was that.

It was fine, he could tell him tomorrow. He had to leave in fifteen minutes, after all.

 

For some reason or another, Nino had taken to hanging out with Okada in the afternoons. Maybe it was because Okada's place was close to the recording studio, and they both got done around the same time, and they did originally have a bright idea to write some songs together. They...never really got around to writing songs; they mainly procrastinated and wasted time, watching baseball games on TV and drinking sodas while reading manga. 

Then things suddenly started to feel complicated for Nino, when he had his realization.

He liked Okada.

He shook his head as he waited for the elevator in the hallway after he said goodbye. Where did that come from? He supposed that maybe those feelings were there all along, but it just took a lot of time for them to come to the surface. However, he put it out of his mind when the elevator dinged and the doors slid open. 

 

"...then C...G...la...lalala...F...." Okada was strumming a tune while Nino jotted down the chords. It was a couple of days later. Nino was back at Okada's place. They finally decided to actually sit down and write a song. 

"Maybe we can use this strum pattern," Nino tapped a rhythm on the table with his pencil. Okada tried to copy it. "No, no."

Nino waved his hand towards the guitar and Okada handed it over. He played the chord progression. 

Okada nodded his head, smiling. "Nice. You're good."

Nino returned the smile, his heart skipping a beat. He could just say it...

No, better to leave it for tomorrow. 

 

As the days passed, the song became more and more complete. And every time, Nino found himself staring at the elevator doors thinking, "I could tell him tomorrow."

 

Then the news came from his manager; he'd passed the audition, and he was going on location overseas to film a movie. Naturally the rest of Arashi already knew; so, Nino called Okada. 

"Hey, you're gonna have to work on that song by yourself from now on," he said when Okada picked up.

"Why's that?"

And Nino told him about the movie role. Okada laughed and congratulated him. 

"Then lemme treat you with a drink before you leave."

Nino took a breath. "There's something I need to tell you."

"What?"

And then the breath died as suddenly as it came. "Uh, thanks. I heard you talked to my manager about that role too."

"Oh yeah, no problem. That's what sempai are for, right?"

"Yeah," and after a few more comments, they hung up. 

Nino stared at his phone. Well, there was always tomorrow. 

 

A good number of other Johnnys ended up wanting to wish Nino a safe trip, so in the end Okada threw a party at his place. Nino barely had any time to talk to Okada, and was busy being pulled in all directions from sempai and junior alike. Finally, it was time to go home. As Kame and Jin shuffled out with the last of the vodka, Okada closed the door behind them. The apartment was empty and a mess. 

"Lemme help you clean up," Nino offered, sweeping a pile of plastic cups to one side of the coffee table.

"No, I can't ask the guest of honor to do that."

Nino looked to the side, avoiding eye contact. Although he tried to act normal, there was something inescapably reluctant and melancholy hanging around him. "It's not a problem."

Okada paused. "What's the matter? You're not suddenly afraid of leaving Japan, are you?"

Nino shook his head, his face set. The time had come. “I always told myself, I could do it tomorrow. And I kept pushing it along, always tomorrow. I’m gonna be on a plane tomorrow. I won’t be in the country the tomorrow after that.”

"What are you talking ab---" but Nino raised his hand and cut him off. 

“43 tomorrows ago, I was supposed to tell you…” and here he faded off, and their eyes met. Half a heartbeat passed, and Nino knew exactly what he had to do, what he needed to do. And it was not going according to plan by any means. He leaned forward and he swore that Okada met him part of the way, and they were kissing, just like that. 

Sometimes those idol magazines ran polls on which Johnny the fans thought was the best kisser. Okada tended to rank pretty well, and Nino was happy to confirm that the popular opinion was true. His lips were soft and yielding against Nino’s slightly chapped ones. Nino leaned in with his body and Okada responded, reaching out to grab Nino’s hand. Their fingers automatically intertwined. It felt pretty great, standing there and kissing while holding hands. Felt like something out of a high school manga. 

“…I like you,” he finished when they pulled away. But it was just a mere formality; everything there was to say was already said in that kiss. 

"Why didn't you just say so?" Okada said quietly. He looked happy, but also a little relieved. 

Nino looked sheepish. "I guess I'm just a procrastinator."


End file.
